Romney surging nationally after biggest debate win in recorded history, polls show

National polling released Monday continues to demonstrate an apparent Mitt Romney surge, with the Republican nominee at least pulling even with President Obama -- and in one poll shooting past him -- on the heels of what Gallup deemed the biggest debate victory in recorded history.

New Gallup numbers show registered voters overwhelmingly considered Romney the winner of the debate in Denver. Seventy-two percent gave Romney the win, while 20 percent said Obama did the better job. Gallup reported the 52-point victory is the biggest the polling firm has ever measured -- the closest was Bill Clinton's 42-point win over George H.W. Bush in a 1992 debate.

The sentiment appeared to have big implications for Romney's national standing.

A separate Pew Research Center poll showed Romney surging from an 8-point deficit to a 4-point lead among likely voters. The Oct. 4-7 survey of 1,112 likely voters showed Romney leading 49-45 percent. Among registered voters, the two candidates were tied.

Gallup polling among registered voters in the three days after the debate also showed the candidates tied at 47 percent each. In the three days prior, Obama was leading by 5 points.

The Gallup numbers follow a national Rasmussen survey which showed Romney leading 49-47 percent. Rasmussen also released several swing-state polls on Friday showing Romney pulling roughly even with Obama in the wake of the debate.

Gallup typically reports polling based on seven-day rolling averages -- in the latest, Obama is leading 49-46 percent. Gallup reported that the gap "would narrow further" if Romney's momentum continues.

Romney is trying to build on his surge with a foreign policy speech in Virginia on Monday.

Obama's team, though, is aggressively hammering Romney as a manipulator of the facts, suggesting the president will challenge him more firmly on the debate stage next week.

A vice presidential debate is set for this Thursday, with two more presidential debates scheduled after that.

The post-debate Gallup poll of 1,387 registered voters was conducted Oct. 4-6. It had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.